How Healthy are Canadian Eating Habits?

Healthy Living
Food and Nutrition

Walk into an eatery or wheel into a drive thru – you will be welcomed by mouth-watering images of sweet and sugary donuts, cookies, French fries, chicken wings, hamburgers … great!

Wait a minute! Did you notice something is missing?

How often have you seen a salad or fresh food being advertised here? Well, fresh and green are not really the ‘cash register friendly’ words. And after all, it’s all about money, honey!

It is the simple logic of supply and demand. We, the consumer, are the actual driving force. And the heartening news is that we Canadians are becoming more careful about what we eat. A good example is the hearty vegetable soup which is now included in the menus of many – and is even being advertised.

According to the 2001 Tracking Nutrition Trends survey, nine in ten (92%) Canadians indicated making an effort to eat well.

The same survey also showed that 38% of adult Canadians rated their eating habits as “very good” or “excellent”.

Maintaining personal health was the main reason (58%) of making healthy diet choices – more than the other seemingly more obvious reasons such as losing weight (22%) and looking better (8%). In considering health maintenance to be very influential for their decision on food choices, women (74%) fared better than men (64%).

However, a report of Statistics Canada (Released 2006, Modified June 2007) based on the 2006 snapshot of food available for consumption showed a mixed trend.

On the downside, it showed:

• A decline in the fresh vegetables available for consumption, 2.5% fewer than 2005.

• Canadians devotion to coffee remained strong. Coffee lovers drank 86 litres in 2006.

• Milk continued its long-term downward trend falling 0.6% in 2006 to 58.7 litres per person.

• Alcohol consumption graphs went up.

o Beer consumption, which makes up about 80% of all alcoholic beverages consumed, rose to 77 litres per person (over 15 years of age) in 2006.

o The intake of wine continued to increase over the last 10 years reaching 13.9 litres each in 2006.

o Spirit consumption, at 7 litres per Canadian, remained comparable to 2005.

These levels may be understated since they do not include home made and brew-on-the-premises wine and beer or contraband alcohol.

The positive trends it showed include:

• Record rise in cereal consumption. Total cereals available from the food supply amounted to a record high 61.0 kg per person in 2006, up from 60.3 kg in 2005. These grain-based products include pasta, bakery products and cereal-based snacks.

• Cutting down on sugar in diet. Indications are that 2006 refined sugar available was down to 22.3 kg/person, a drop of 4.0% from the previous year.

• Oils and fats consumption declined. In 2006, Canadians used 18.6 kg of oils and fats per person, compared to 19.3 kg in 2005.

• The calories available from the food supply declined by 0.5% in 2006.

On the basis of these facts and figures, we know we need to do more to tilt these graphs in favour of healthier eating habits. To achieve this follow these tips:

1. Read food labels (the nutritional data) of the food packs. Avoid the ones with high content of saturated / trans fats.

2. Cut down on caffeine and avoid alcoholic drinks.

3. Give a miss to sugary dips.

4. Watch your portion sizes.

5. Choose whole grain products.

6. Choose products prepared with little or no added fat, sugar or salt.

7. Include fresh vegetables and fruit in your diet.

8. Select lean meat or meat alternatives such as beans, lentils and tofu more often.

9. Eat a variety of nutrient-rich foods.

10. Eat regular meals.

And refer to Health Canada food guide (http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/food-guide-aliment/index_e.html) – as often as possible. Remember diet plays a crucial role in your wellbeing and being healthy.